Thursday, 13 March 2014

His Nibs

You know how it is. You set yourself the task of finding one thing (in this case two 1980s chutney jars, don't ask) and you find that when you've finally exited the be-mildewed outhouse your kitchen table is groaning with piles of other stuff you've found. "Well I never, fancy seeing that again. How lovely". So why was it in there in the first place? There must be name for this. I'll call it the Slawston Syndrome to be going on with. This Silveroid Stainless Steel Fountain Pen Nib display card nearly made it into Unmitigated England, so perhaps in disgust at rejection it wrote itself into the brick outhouse. But it's a very timely reappearance, as there is now serious talk of a third Unmitigated England Book. Which I can't wait to start. Perhaps I'll try using one of the non-corrodible nibs to kick-off my thoughts. After all, it says they have '3 Degrees of Point'. I've had that myself sometimes.

8 comments:

An Unmitigated England the Third? What joy; it'll be able to keep I and II company on my bookshelf. By the way did you see that amazing collection of railwayana and automobilia on BBC2 last night? If not you're in for a treat...and prepare yourself for extreme envy!

I did indeed see it VK. The railway and automobilia was extraordinary. A superb collection. I went very quiet (for once) when I saw all that Southern Region stuff. Particularly the beautiful green station signs for Rye and Ore

I certainly take my hat off to collectors such as those on that programme; especially the chap with the railway collection, nay - hoard. He's probably saved a lot of items from ticket stubs through to those stunning posters that would have been otherwise thrown away back in the 70s and earlier. Here's to the great British collector!

Peter, I have the syndrome too. In my case collecting letterpress posters for auction sales, etc is my current weakness. I have boxes filled with tins and other packaging, collections of In Memorium cards, postcards etc.As regards today's post I have a card for Gillott's Superfine Drawing Pens with all 12 nibs and nib holder. The card announces that they were Pen Makers to the late King George V.

Mmm, Gillott's rings a bell from my days learning to be a 'commercial artist'. I think they did art board. It brings back memories of being a junior and waiting to be served in Drawing Office Requisites in Marble Street in Leicester. With a lady running about with rolls of Kodatrace and sheets of CS10, looking like Alice of WOOC(P) in the Len Deighton films, cigarette dangling from her lower lip.

About Me

I am a designer, writer and photographer who spends all his time looking at England, particularly buildings and the countryside. But I have a leaning towards the slightly odd and neglected, the unsung elements that make England such an interesting place to live in. I am the author and photographer of over 25 books, in particular Unmitigated England (Adelphi 2006), More from Unmitigated England (Adelphi 2007), Cross Country (Wiley 2011), The Cigarette Papers (Frances Lincoln 2012), Preposterous Erections (Frances Lincoln 2012) and English Allsorts (Adelphi 2015)

Preposterous Erections

The Cigarette Papers

Cross Country

"Until the happy advent of Peter Ashley's Cross Country it has, ironically, been foreigners who have been best at celebrating Englishness". Christina Hardyment / The Independent

More from Unmitigated England

"Give this book to someone you know- if not everyone you know." Simon Heffer, Country Life. "When it comes to spotting the small but telling details of Englishness, Peter Ashley has no equal." Michael Prodger, Sunday Telegraph